The Joy of Cereal

When you feed your kids cereal for the first time in a year, they think you are Mother Teresa.

You see, it's been since August '08 that my kids have partaken of a sugary-high from kiddie cereal. Last August was when the "doctor o' health" determined my kids were walking experiments in allergies gone haywire. We already knew about dairy problems for one of them, then discovered that actually two of my guys are prone to cow issues.

Gone were the cheese sandwiches, ice cream, milk, sour cream. Basically, anything worth eating, as far as my little guy was concerned.

Add issues with beef, chicken, sugar, and wheat and you reduce the list of cooking ingredients to something that could only be found in Hell.

So, we've been partaking of wheat-free breakfasts ever since.

Now, it's not like we've been eating cardboard boxes. I've actually figured out how to make pretty decent waffles, pancakes and blueberry muffins. Oatmeal and grits stayed on the menu, too.

But, until yesterday, not cereal.

One kid was BEGGING me to buy a box of the stuff. Every time I entered the cereal aisle, my blood ran cold and I began to sweat and shake.

I could basically write off anything that had the words "sugar", "frosted", "whole grain", or "puffy" in the title. That effectively wiped out 3/4 of the aisle, without me batting an eyelash.

I managed to find an old favorite, though: Rice Chex. Box one.

On to Whole Foods. They have an astounding selection of gluten (wheat) free products, among which is a peanut butter puff cereal. For the equivalent in pay of a day's work in the coal mines you, too, can try this stuff*.

After getting over the sticker shock, I found another box. Described as "puffs of cinnamon rice". But, I didn't care what they tasted like because there was a cute picture of a puffin on the cover and they were ON SALE**! Cha-ching!

Now the issue of liquid. Sweetened soy milk = too much sugar. Cow's milk = hyperactivity/throwing up. Almond milk = "Mom? Gross".

I settled on unsweetened rice milk and coconut milk***. Mission accomplished.

This morning, one kid got up 45 minutes early to dig into his bowl of heaven. The other followed, five minutes later, to discover his brother pouring his bowl. Apparently he was so excited that he decided to serve BOTH his brothers.

Their choice? The peanut butter puffs. A taste test after breakfast determined they like the puffin cereal best. I'll be wiping out the "on sale" supply at every Whole Foods within 30 miles today.

Most important, from this Mom's perspective, is the fact that I've regained at least 30 minutes of sleep by leaving the feeding to the cereal-makers of the world.

In my humble opinion, that is so much better than the prize at the bottom of the box of Frosted Flakes!



*Just don't come ask for a sample at our house. My kids are a little attached to their new found glory. They are liable to TAKE YOU DOWN if you get within 100 feet of the box.

**This box will cost the coal miner only half a day's wage!

***This isn't the stuff you're given on Oahu when some studly Samoan breaks open a coconut. Let's just say that manufacturers have made GREAT strides.